Bowden “Death Watch”

In a dramatic, rumor-filled day in Clempsun, S.C., sources tell FITSNews that embattled head football coach Tommy Bowden could be out of a job come Monday.

“Bowden gone,” blared one text message we received from a source close to the Clempsun Board of Trustees, “will be public Monday.”

Clemson officials wouldn’t confirm or deny that report, but multiple sources have told us that Bowden’s big press conference yesterday to announce the benching of starting quarterback Cullen Harper was a last-ditch effort to build fan support, deflect attention away from the noose around his own neck and project the image that he was still in control of his football team.

That may have backfired, however, as Clempsun players were outraged to discover that Bowden publicly announced the decision to bench Harper before telling his quarterback, a big “no-no” in the coaching business.

“Friends that were with Harper say that Tommy was calling his phone nonstop after the announcement and that Cullen ignored him,” reads another Tigertown text we received yesterday. “The players are with Cullen. They are pissed (Bowden) is trying to put the blame on them.”

Another source at Clempsun tells us that Bowden’s $4 million buyout is the only thing keeping him in a job, adding “he’d have been fired two weeks ago after Maryland if it wasn’t for that.”